Community and Charitable Work

Our church is situated in one of the most deprived areas of Leicestershire, and by some indices, in the whole country. That deprivation takes many forms: it is seen in the levels of unemployment, benefit claimants, and poor education; it is seen in the number of people living alone, lonely and isolated, or homeless: sleeping in sheds, cars, sofa-surfing; elderly and in a flat unable to afford heating or cooking. Its effects include isolation, mental health problems, addiction, crime, lack of a sense of purpose and self-worth. Covid made all this worse by increasing the sense of isolation. People stopped mixing and previous levels of social activity have never returned.

We are very engaged in helping the wider community in a variety of ways. It is very important to us that love of our neighbour should be shown in action. All our activities are inclusive and open to everybody.

• We have a branch of the SVP, the St. Vincent de Paul Society which is engaged in visiting and helping the needy and the lonely. 

• We also run the Silver Circle elderly social group. 

• We support the local food bank. 

• We supply food for families in poverty at Christmas through two schemes, including the local Brownlow Well-being Hub.

• We host a variety of social and cultural events in our church, such as concerts, talks, and a Christmas Wreath Festival, which help to combat social isolation and bring the community together. These are run by Friends of St John’s Church.

Our parish and community hall opened in May 2026. The hall will allow us to extend our current activities and in particular to offer free meals for the homeless and deprived. Our Friendship and Meals project will be run in partnership with Storehouse Foodbank and several other local charitable organisations. The project is still in the design stage but if you would like further information please email Mary, the project manager mealsandfriendship@gmail.com.

If you are interested in our community and charity work and would like to volunteer your time and skills, please view the Newsletter for current opportunities or contact the parish office stjohn.melton@dioceseofnottingham.uk.